Automatic change-making machine.



C. A. McMULLEN.

AUTOMATIC CHANGE MAKING MACHINE. APPLICATION man 05u20. 1913.

1 ,228,459 Patented June 5, 1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I.

SALE -.6 0 54 CHANGE-1 5 CASH Racn75 C. A. MCMULLEN.

AUTOMATIC CHANGE MAKING MACHINE. APPLICATioN man Dsc. 20. 19:3.

1,228,459; 1 ram-mun@ 1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

IN1/Emol? C. A. McMULLEN.

- AUTOMATIC CHANGE MAKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC|20| 1913.

Panted June 5, 1917 4 SHEETS-SHEET s.

C.`A. NICIVIULLEN.

AUTOMATIC CHANGE MAKING MACHINE.

APPLlcATloN FILED nEc.20. 1913.'

1,228,459. A A Patented June 5,1917,

IUS IE5 IN VEN TOR ATTORNEY C livery devices necessary to produce the de meente.

fTo all 'whom it may concern: y

Be it known that li, CHARLES A. MoMuL- LnN, a citizen not the United States, and# resident of Caldwell, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Automatic Change- Making Machine, of which the following isy a specification.

'lF-he object of my invention is to eliminate the mental calculation ordinarily necessary in the act of making change between a given amount, saythe amount of a sale, and an amount of greater value, say the amount which has been tendered in payment ot that sale. ln its broadest aspect, myinvention contemplates the provision of a machine which will automatically deliver the exact amount in change between a given amount of any value and any other amount of greater value. n

ln its construction this machine embodies the combination of'coin delivering devices, lindicating devices having values indicative of the higher amounts, say for instance the g amounts received, and change making keys possessing the lower values, representing say the amountslof the actual sales, which change making keys are disposed in certain distinguishing relation to the indicating devices and arev arranged each when operated to actuate the changedelivery device or devices necessary to deliver the change equal to the difference between the value ot they change key operated and the value O the indicating device to which that particular key is related. 'lhe indicating devices representing the higher values of amounts received and the change making keys representing the relatively lower values ot sale or actual expenditure, it is only necessary therefore upon receiving an amount in excess oi' the saleor actual value of the transaction, to operate the key which'possesses that particular sale value and which is related to the indicating device which has a value corresponding to the value of the amount received, whereupon the coin desired amount of change will be .actuated to deliver that change. ln this way all mental calculation is eliminated and the clerk or operator merely has to select and operate the key of the value of the sale which is inv distinguishingl relation to the indicating device bearing the value of the amount received.

i' Specification of. Letters Patent. Patented June 5,

y A Application',med December 20,11913. Serial No. 807,860.

` UNITED STATES, PA'.IEl\T'l`L (.)FFICEv 'i i i' CHARLES A'. MenULLEN, or cnLDwEnL, new teaser.

i i l.ertrronrMirc cuenca-MAKING trasmite@4 mit.

The relation between the sets of change vmaking keys andthe indicating devices to.

which the respective" sets of keys belong, may be established in various ways. Une way which l have'v illustrated in the present disclosure is to make the indicating devices in the form of keys and to place the change keys relating to a particular indicating key atone side of that key, the indicating keys being dierentiated from the change keys, as by a di'erence in size, color' or shape.

In addition to theabove, my invention contemplates alsothe registering or recording of the work done by the machine. ln

the form of the invention illustrated, l have v shown merely a register for totaling the amounts retained, but if desired, through' the use of additional mechanism, acomplete record may be kept as well of the amounts received and the change given. The change making keys are suitably connected to operate the registering mechanism each to the eXtentfof its own particular value, and, for the purpose of keeping a. true total o lall the amounts received, including as well the amounts for whiclrno change is needed, the indicating keys are also connected to operate the registering mechanism. Consequently when an amount is received for which no change is required, the indicating key of that particular value is operated and that amount is thereupon added to the previous total. The indicating devices therefore, in the present instance, perform a registering function in addition to their purely indicative or designating function.

Various other features of my invention will appear as the specification proceeds.

ln the accompanying drawings ll have illustrated a practical embodiment of the invention, but as this disclosure is purely illustrative, l would have it understood' thata various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit of the invention.

Figure 1, is a rontview of a machine constructedin accordance with and embodying theinvention, this view illustrating more particularlyl the relation of the change .making keys to the indicating keys. In this view the casing at the lower corner of the machine is broken away to show the construction' of the registering mechanism.

Fig. 2, is a transverse sectional view of the machine, taken substantially on the 'plane of the line 2-2 of Fig. 3.

tilt

i devices, this view being taken substantially' ,on the planex of the line ''-5 in Fig. 2.

lndicating .or no-change keys.

. Considering the drawings now more in detail: The indicating. devices, 7, in the machinel illustrated, 'are in the form of push keys and lwill hereafter be referred to as Tthe he number and the values of these keys will depend upon the capacity of the machine.

' The present machine is designed to deliver the change fromV any value from ten cents vup to one dollar and the indicating keys accordingly range in value from ten cents up to one-dollar. rlhere is also provided for .registering purposes, as will later appear, a

ve cents value lio-change key. In machines of greater or less capacity than this, there will be a correspondingly greater or less number of these keys. r1`he indicating keys represent amounts received, and for each indicating key there .are change making keys representing all the di'erent amounts for which the amount of that particular indicating keymight be oHered in payment. rlhese change making keys are designated 8, and they are arranged in distinguishing relation to the indicating keys t0 which they relate by placing them at one side (to the left) of their respective indicating keys.

For convenience and for the purpose of producing a more or `less symmetrical keyboard, the keys are banked in four horizontal rows. In the first row are placed the` keys for making change between one dollar and any amount from live cents up to ninety-live cents. rlhis row is accordingly made up of a series of sequentially arranged change making keys ranging in value `from 5 cents up to 95 cents and all arranged to the one side of and therefore in distinguishing relation to the 100 or one dollar indicating key which is located at the end 1 of the row.

' At the end ofthe second row is the indicating keyof'95,cents value and in fdistinguishing relation to that is the 90 cents change making key.. Then in order, come the 90 cents indicating key with its related 85 cents change making key, the 85 cents indicating key with its 80 cents change making key, the'80 cents indicating key with its cents change making key, the 75 related 70, 65, 60, and 55 cents change making keys, the 'Z'O7 with its 65 cents change makingkey, the

y 65 cents indicating key with its 60 cents change making key, and the 60 cents in.`

cents indicating key with itsr cents indicating key dicating key with'v its 5,5 cents change mak-' ing key. J

The third row is made up of the 55 "cents value' indicating key rwith its'related cents change making key, the 50 cents indicating key with its 25 centsl i change making key.

In the. fourth row there is located the 25 cents indicating key with its 20, 15, 10, and 5 cents value change making keys, the 20 cents indicating key with its 15 cents change making key, the 15 cents indicating key, the 10 cents indicating key'with its 5 cents change making key,pand the 5 cents indicating key.

The coin delivery devices which are operated by thechange making keys, may be of any desired construction and in the present instance they take the form of dogs or trip members 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13, pivotally supported on a rod 14 and projecting into the fifty cents, twenty live cents, twenty cents, ten cents and live cents coin chutes 15, 16, 17,v 18 and 19, respectively. As indicated most clearly in Figs. 3 and 5 each of these ltrip dogs is in the form of a yoke having upper and lower fingers 20eand 2l, respectively, designed to alternately project in through an opening in the side of the coin chute as the dog is rocked on its pivot, and an intermediate hollow or pocket 22, to receive the coin (or coins in the case of the twenty cent trip dog). rlhe connections from the operating key to the coin delivery devices may be of any type best suited to effect the necessary selective operation of the di'erent delivery devices. In the machine illustrated, these connections areas follows: The stem or shank 24 of each change making key is connected at its inner end to the upright arm of a bell crank 25, whichis supportedonv a pivot rod 26, and to the horizontal arm of this bell crank is connected an.' upright selector rod 27, which is arranged to operate one or more of the horizontal rock shafts 28, 29, 30, 31 and 32, each rock shaft being connected by a rocker arm 33, link 34, pivoted bell crank lector rods carry pins or abutments 'engage with outstanding arms on the oid'erent rockshafts. 4 'lhus certain of the selector rods carry pins 38, positioned toen'gage the outstanding arnus 39, on the. upper rock shaft 28, other selector rodscarry pins 40,

' to engage outstanding arms 41 on the second rock shaft 29, while otherfselector rodscarry i pins 42, 43 and 44, to engage the outstandlli ing arms 45, 46 and 47 0n the rock shafts'30, 31 and 32, respectively.-

` To better understand theoperation ofthe machine as thus far described, assume forv `example that theoperator, a cashier for instance, has been tendered the sum of seventylive cents, in the form of a half dollar and a 4upon the downward movement of this selector rod, the shafts 31 and 32 are rocked and as these shafts are connected to operate the ten and five cents coin trips respectively,

` the desired amount, hfteen cents in change is automatically delivered. lhe released coins may be caught in a trough 50, terminating in an open tray 5l, from which the coins may be readily extracted, the tray being placed at the hack of the machine or in some other position whereit may be conveniently reached hy the party to whom the change is due.

lf,fas a further example, the expenditure was twenty cents and the amount tendered in payment was one dollar, thefchange maki ing key of twenty cents 'value which stands in distinguishing relation to the one dollar indicating key would be, operated, and, as the selector rod of that particular key carries pins to actuate the rock shafts (28, 29 and 32) controlling the hfty, twenty-five and live i cents coin trips,-the proper change, eighty cents, would he automatically delivered. lf the expenditure was ve cents and fifty cents was odered in payment, the five cents change making key which is in distinguishing relation to the fty cents indicating key, would be operated, and, as the selector rod of that key carries pins .to actuate the rock shafts (29 and 30) controlling the twentyve and twenty cents coin trips, forty-fivel cents in change would be automatically delivered. In each case the simple act of operating the change making key of the lex-l penditur'e value which is in distinguishing relation to the key having the value of the amount tendered, elfects, through theselective. operation' of the, various coii deliverydevices, an automatic delivery of the correct ychange. l

' 'To provide for storage of a sucient supply of coins in the machine, I have shown the coin chutes as having extensions 15', 16, 17', 18 and 19', of zig-zag formation, extending from end to end of the machine and provided withentrance slots 15, 16, 17 18 and 19, through which the respective chutes are charged. The incline of these' coin-storage extensions is suicient to cause the coins to feed naturally by gravity.

A visual indication of each transaction isy tual expenditure was sixty cents and that the change given was fifteen cents. The cards are mounted on rods 56, which are guided for vertical lifting movement in the bracket 57, each rod being connected at its lower end with the long arm 58, of an angle lever, the

shorter arm 59, of which is connected hy a link 60, with a rocker 61, on the restoring shaft 62. 'llhese rockers are directly operated by the selector rods, Vthe rods being shown connected thereto at their lower ends by means of pivot pins 63. The movement of the selector rod, therefore, through the connections described, causes the indicator card pertaining to that particular selector rod to be projected up into view. Each indicator card preferably remains in view until the machine is next operated. To this end l have provided a support 65, hingedl at 66, and normally resting against a stop 67. rlhe ends of the long arms 58, of the angle levers are rounded off as at 68 so as to tilt the freeend of thehinged support upward during the upward lifting movement of such lever. When tilted up far enough the support releases the arm which was previously supported hy it, thereby allowing that particular card to drop down out of sight, andy the support drops back into position to sustain the arm which'has just raised it. A pin and .slot or other lost-motion connection 69, is provided at some point in the line of connections to allow the indicator card to remain in its exposed positionand permit the other parts to return to their normal positions.

A. spring 70, is .the means employed in the y other fixed support at its inner end and con`' perend of the restoring rod is guided in l its movement by'being connected to rocker arm 75 on the horizontal shaft 26. The restoring rod also `carries a pin 76, engaging beneath a rigid outstanding arm 77, on the/ pivoted shaft 78. This shaft has a series of rigid arms 79, whichy are arranged to be engaged by pins 80, on the selector rods 27,

operation of the change making keys effects I a movementof one or more ofthe rockl shafts 28, 29, etc., andthe operation of a no change key eifects a movement of the shaft 78,l and as all theseshafts are acted uponv by the restoring spring (through the agency of therestoring rod and connections described), the said spring opposes the downward movement of the selector rods and therefore serves to return said rods and connected parts back to normal position as soon as pressure on the keys is released..

To facilitate operation of the keys, I have shown the front of the casing 83, of the machine, beneath the keyboard, provided withan undercut which the fingers may be engaged while gear 106, fast on the second register disk` .riphery and carries on same hand.

The registerin mechanism which forms a part of the rmac ine illustrated, consists of a series of numbered disks .85, 86, 87, 88, 89,'

90, 91, `92 and 93, the figures of which are visiblev through windows 94, in the g front lower portion ofthe casing. These disks are rotatably supported on a shaft 95 and are operated through the following connections: Each of the rockers .61, has a downwardly .extending arm. 96,L connected by a link 97, with a pivoted gear segment 98, which meshes with a pinion 99, said pinion being connected by a pawl 100 with a large gear 101, which is in mesh with a gear 102, fast to the lirst register disk 85. `This first disk has the characters 0 and 5 arranged in alternation around its entire petheface opposite that to which the gear 102 is attached, a series of pins 103, equal in number to half the number of designations on the disk. As the disk is rotated to bring each alternate character into view, one of these pins meshes with a pinion 104, loose on shaft 105, and carries that pinion forward av distance of one tooth. Pinion 104I is in mesh with a 86. This secondl disk and the succeeding disks arey numbered from zero up to nine and each of them carries a pin 107. Upon of the no change or indicating keys. The,

portion 84, forming agrip with.

lfirst register disk would be each complete revolution ofthe second disk, the pinv 107 which it carries, meshes'with a pinion 108v on shaft 105, and advances that pinion one tooth. Tliis pinion is in mesh with a gear 109 on rthe back ofI the third register disk.- By successive 'sets of intermeshing kpinions and gears, and with the` aid of the pins 107, a. complete rotationof one register disk serves ltofadvance the next disk one step.

In order to impart a movement tothe register disks,y proportionate to the value of the key operated, the gear segments actu'- ated by the respectiveakeys, are provided with a numberv of teeth necessary to give the requisite proportionate movement to the `register disks, substantially as indicated in lFlg. 2.

I To illustrate the operation ofthe registering mechanism, let it be supposed that all theregister disks stand at zeroand that a five cent piece has been received in payment of an expenditure of five cents. vThe no change key of five cents value is thereupon operated and as the gear segment which is actuated by this key is of suicient extent to only advance the first register disk one step, said disk is turned just far enough to cause the numeral 5 to appear in the first window opening 94. As the parts are restored to normal position by the restoring spring, the gear segment drops back into its lowered position, the pawl 100-permitting backward rotation of pinion 99 at this time without disturbing the position of the gears and register disks. Iffthe expenditureV had been ten cents yand a twenty-five cent piece' had been received in payment thereof, the ten cents value change making key which is in distinguishing relation to the indicating or no change key of twentyfive cents value would be operated, and this, in addition to effecting thedelivery of the fifteen cents in change, wouldy cause the actuation of the gear segment which is connected with that key. This gear segment has teeth sulflicient to turn the first register disk a distance of two spaces, which would cause the advance the second register disk one step, thereby causing this second disk to register .1, the'two dlsks together thus registering ten cents. 'As further examples, if the amount retained were forty-live cents, the advanced nine steps, leaving that disk registering 5, and

four of the pins 103, having by this movement been engaged with pinion 104, would cause the second register disk to register 4, making a showing of 45 then an additional payment of sixty cents were received, the rst diskfwould be advanced twelve steps, leaving that disk regcents; if

dium of pinion causing that disk to register l, the three disks thus registering the correct total of one dollar, ve cents.

In the machine illustrated, provision is also made for simply delivering various amounts of change, at will. Thus the key 111, (marked operates a selectorrod 112, carrying pins 113, to engage outstanding arms 114 on the rock shafts 28, 2?, 30 and 32, which are connected respectively with the fifty, twenty-ve, twenty, and five cents coin trips. The operation of this key therefore effects the delivery of one dollar in change. Two other keys 115 and 116, are shown, (marked 50 and 25), which, by their selector rods 117 and 118, respectively, operate the rock shafts connected with the coin strips necessary for delivering the amounts of ift and twenty-five cents in change. Other eys of this purely money chaiging character could be added if desire c ln order that the operator may know at once when any of the-coin chutes need recharging, I have shown the machine equippedr with so-called replenishing indicators 120,

these indicators being connected to the lower or free ends of the movable coin holders or extensions 15', 16', etc., which at their u per ends are pivoted at 121. The weight of the coins serves to depress the coin holdy ers against the tension of the supporting springs 122. As the coin holders become empt or nearly empty of coins, these counterba ancing springs lift the free ends of the coin holders and the indicators are thus projected into view through slots in the top of the casing.

What l claim is:

1. An automatic change making machine,

comprising in combination, change delivery devices, indicating devices possessing values representing amounts received, a plurality of change making devices distinguishably associated with each indicating device, possessing values less than the value of the indicating device with which they are associated and representing amounts for the payment of which the amount of that particular indicating device might be tendered and operating connections from the change making devices tothe change delivery devices necessary to deliver the changeditween the values of the res ective indicating devices and the values o the change lmaking devices which are distinguishably associated with the respective indicating devices.

2. An automatic change making machine, comprising in combination'change delivery devices, indicating keys having values representative of amounts received, change makl ing keys grouped in distinguishing relation to the respective indicating keys and having values less than the values of the indicating keys withwhich they are grouped, and operating connections from diderent change making keys to the change delivery devices necessary 1z0-deliver the diierence in change between the values of the ,respective indicating keys and the values of the change. making keys in grouped relation to the respective indicating keys.

3. An automatic change making machine, comprising in combination, registeringmechanism, indicating keys of diHerent values representative of various amounts rel.ceived and arranged each when operated to actuate the registering mechanism to the extent of its value, change making keys distinguishably related to the indicating keys, o less value than the indicating keys and arranged when operated to actuate the registering mechanism to the extent of their respective values, change delivery devices and operating connections from the change making keys to the change delivery devices nec essary to` deliver the change between the values of the change making keys and the values of the indicating keys with which the respective change making keys are distinguishably associated.

4. An automatic change making machine, comprising, indicating keys of 'graduated value, change making keys grouped in distinguishing relation t0 individual indicatin keys and possessing values related to the va ues of the indicating keys with which they are grouped, change delivery devices and operating connections from the change maln'ng keys to the change delivery devices necessary to deliver the change between the values of the change making keys and the values of the indicating keys with which the said change making keys are grouped.

5. An automatic change making machine, comprising, indicating keys of graduated value, change making keys grouped in distinguishing relation to individual indicating keys and possessing values related to the values of the indicating keys with which they are grouped, change delivery devices, operating connections from the change makfea ing keys to the change delivery devices necplished by the keys with which they are connected. .d

6. In an automatic' change making -machine, coin delivery devices, a rock shaft connected with each coin deliver device, rocker arms on said rock shafts, key-operated selector rods, abutments on the selector rods engaging certain of said rocker arms for selectively operating the respective rock shafts, a restoring spring and one-.way connections from the respective rock shafts to i said restoring spring whereby operation of any of said rock shafts Will storing spring under tension.

Signed at New York city in the county of 15 New York and State of New York this 12th day of December A. D. 1913.

CHARLES A. MCMULLEN. Witnesses:

PHILIP S. MCLEAN,

CELIA L. BRooKs.

place said` re- 

